ARLINGTON, Va. — National Grocers Association said it has asked the Federal Trade Commission to withdraw its proposed limits for advertising food products to children.
"This is just another example of unnecessary regulatory overreach at a time when the food industry has taken giant steps in providing consumers with nutritional information and healthy food choices," said Peter J. Larkin, president and chief executive officer, NGA.
The Interagency Working Group on Food Marketed to Children: Proposed Nutrition Principles include recommendations addressing the nutritional quality of foods that are heavily marketed to children ages 2-17.
"The 'voluntary' Proposed Principles require the reformulation of a wide range of products and limit the marketing of national and private-brand label products," NGA said in a statement. "NGA, food retailers, food wholesalers and manufacturers have had a lot of recent experience with 'voluntary principles,' including country of origin labeling and nutrition labeling, both of which began as 'voluntary regulations' and quickly became government mandates that were costly and burdensome to independent retailers and wholesalers."